All Hallow's Eve
by a mountain of gideon's scones
Summary: To show the unity between vampires and humans, Amelie organises a compulsory Halloween party for the town to attend. But when the humans take advantage of this, what happens? Will they resolve it relatively peacefully, or will all hell break loose? R
1. Preparations

_So, I've been working on this a while and decided it was appropriate now, one week before Halloween, to post it._

_I don't own anything._

_~set…well…it doesn't really have a place since the vampires are healed but Sam is still alive~_

_**Musical inspiration: Mylo Xyloto helped me put the finishing touches to this. GO BUY IT NOW!**_

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Sitting in her office, Amelie sighed. It wasn't a particularly loud sigh, nor even that expressive of her emotions to any other person, yet, for Amelie, it displayed everything she felt about the upcoming 'holiday'. _Not_ that Halloween could be called a holiday – it was a vile day of the year where children tricked adults into giving them sweets by refusing to budge from their doorsteps.

That wasn't the reason why she hated Halloween with a passion, however. No, ever since the conception of Morganville, it had been the most…_difficult_ holiday to face the vampires. Naturally, the main dress-up of children – and adults – in Morganville was to be vampire hunters, something which didn't go down well with the more egotistical of the vampires, yet Amelie saw no harm in it. It was their holiday in their town; they could do as they pleased so long as they didn't upset the balance of peace…

Unfortunately, that's what happened every year. There couldn't be a 31st October in _any_ year where there weren't troubles sparked between the vampire and human populations, fighting which cumulated in the death of at least one vampire and thus at least one human. It was a dangerous time to be a human trick-or-treating in Morganville, since normally at least one innocent child was mixed into the mess and no matter how hard she tried to disentangle them, they couldn't be.

This year, however, she had hoped that it would be better, more peaceful for all involved, stabilising out the decrease in the vampire population and no humans dying. It was why she had set up a proper party planning committee – headed by Monica Morrell because, as much as Amelie hated to admit it, she _did_ know how to plan a party – and ensured that, as much as possible, the most irritable vampires would be kept away from the children. After all, it only took one bite to cause carnage in the town, something she had had _plenty_ of experience of.

"Planning this pointless event _still_, Amelie?" Oliver's head popped into her office and startled her slightly – she hadn't even heard him enter the building.

She scowled before wiping all emotions from her face, picking up a piece of paper and surveying it to appear busy. "You mean the party that shall ensure that we can start a reign of relative peace in Morganville, rather then the continual living on the knife edge as we do presently?" she confirmed, her free hand's fingers drumming lightly on the table. "If so, then yes – and if you care not to be involved, Oliver, then that can be arranged. I can have you on babysitting the university for the entire night – and _no_, there cannot be human killing," she smiled ever so sweetly, knowing she had gotten him where she wanted him – in a position of relative alliance.

He shuddered at the thought of having to spend the entire night at the university before narrowing his eyes as he surveyed her appearance. "And what makes you think that _this_ year shall be anything _but_ dangerous?" he asked her without malice in his tone, mere curiosity. "I mean not to destroy your plans, no matter how pitiful they are, yet what makes you feel that _this_ year is the correct year for you to attempt to bring the two together for festive times?" he sounded honestly inquisitive, trying to understand her reasoning for doing this.

She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment before opening them once again and moving across to the window, looking out through the tinted glass at the rising sun. "There is no reason why this particular year, Oliver, besides for the fact that we may perhaps enjoy a few hours of peace. Surely it is obvious that we require at least a day of happiness in this town, especially amidst a year of such torment?"

He shrugged before sitting himself down in one of the chairs in her office without her saying a word, signalling that he wished to stay for a time without her forcing him to. "I am all for festivities, especially at the humorous All Hallow's Eve, yet perhaps this year is still too raw. We have had many riots this year, so if they have a chance to attack us, what makes you think that they shall not?"

"Are you attempting to hinder or help me, Oliver?" she shot back, turning to face him with an angry expression on her face. "We must trust them more than we have done prior to this year, otherwise what hope have we got that they could perhaps become more agreeable to our presence in the future? This is a bridging opportunity for the population and I _must_ hope that the humans take all they can from it. If not, then I shall concede you are right. But, for now, I have faith in them and can but hope that we can get an end goal that I desire."

He didn't reply for a long while, the silence in the room stretching on and on as she moved to sit back down without sound. Finally, as he stood up to leave, he leaned over to her and said, "Good luck with this, Amelie. Just remember to have a back up plan, for these are _humans_ we are talking about. And if we simply look at your residents of the Glass House, there are enough variations on normal that could happen."

And, with that, he walked swiftly out of the room.

…

Claire sat in the living room of the Glass House, typing furiously on a laptop that had seen better days. "Are you trying to break that, or is it just natural to hammer keys like that?" Shane asked her, a teasing tone to his voice that she managed to ignore – if she didn't get the essay done _right then_, she would fail the class.

Flipping him off, she proceeded to type harder and faster, having another three thousand words to type in half an hour to even have a chance of handing it in on time. "Later, Shane," she muttered as she turned pages in the textbook, looking for the confirmation of the formula she had in her head to make sure that it matched the modern version. There had been about fifteen variations on this particular equation alone in three hundred years, Myrnin having made her memorise them all, and she sometimes got them mixed up -it wouldn't be the easiest thing to explain to a modern day teacher that you had learned the other variations from a vampire more than a thousand years old who was more than slightly crazy. Either they'd laugh – as she was more than certain that this particular teacher had less knowledge about vampires than she did about English pounds to Euro conversion rates – or they'd arrange for her to be carted off to the mental house in Morganville, one which had more patients than beds.

"Oh, ok then," he replied, his tone carefully nonchalant. "I just thought you may be interested to know that you have a letter that looks like it's from Amelie," he slipped in, knowing that this would capture her attention.

For a good minute or so, the information didn't sink in and she continued to plough through the paragraph she was writing, writing the end of a sentence before she realised what he had said. "What could she want with me _now_?" she sighed, bashing her head against the keyboard more than slightly melodramatically. "She's probably writing to ask me to come and feed her fish, isn't she? And she couldn't _text_ me that, or even ring me, because she's medieval – don't interrupt me, Shane! Oh no, she hasn't _heard_ of texting! So she's writing to me to tell me to come feed the fish or-or to paint her toenails or something like that and by the time I've gotten it, the fish will be dead or her…her toenails will _smell_!" more than _slightly_ over the top, Claire moaned, ignoring Shane's many attempts to cut in.

"We _all_ have one," he lifted the other three letters, all the same style envelope, and laughed at her overreaction. "And unless it takes four people to feed fish I doubt she even owns, something tells me that it's something that is either extremely unpleasant or…well, Amelie never brings good news, so it has to be bad," the smile on his face faded as he said this, handing her the envelope with Claire Danvers written on it.

Her curiosity kindled to the point where her essay no longer matters, she set her laptop to the side and ripped open the envelope, the usual smell of roses issuing from the paper, the way you could make sure that you weren't being tricked by someone pretending to be Amelie. Not that it happened often, but it had happened to Claire and she didn't want that to happen again.

_Dear Claire Danvers_

_You have been invited to the Morganville All Hallow's Eve festivities, to commence at 7pm prompt upon 31__st__ October._

_Attendance is compulsory for __all__ residents, as is the traditional dressing up. Sweets shall __not__ be handed out to children over the age of 8._

_Location: Founder's Square, to be relocated if the weather does not permit. _

_Further details may follow, if appropriate._

_Finally, __all__ must attend with a date and __any misbehaviour shall be dealt with in the harshest of manners__._

_Sincerely_

_Amelie_

Signed off with her signature, it was most definitely from Amelie.

And it was a…_party_.

"Are you _serious_?" was all Claire could mutter, disgust in her tone. "She's holding a _party_?"

"There's no _sweets_?" evidently, Shane got caught up on the important point in the invitation, the fact that only under eight year olds would get any sweets, yet they still had to dress up. "Holy shit, there's no point in going!"

"Attendance is compulsory, Shane, I don't think you'd get away with not going," Claire reminded him, pointing to the appropriate place on his invite. "I'd have thought you would have been more bothered about having a party where we have to spend the entire time with vampires?"

This was the moment Eve came down the stairs, a most inappropriate time. "Whoa? _Who_ is going to a party where they have to hang out with vamps?" she asked, confused even as Shane threw her a letter.

"All of us," was his grim response. "Ahh, well, I've figured one bonus. We can go as vampire hunters, armed with weapons incase the bloodsuckers try and do something. We're not going into this blind, Claire…it could be a blast."

She could only look at him in shock. Not only were they going to a mixed human and vampire party, but he wanted to kickstart a riot and murder spree of vampires. Oh no, this would _not _end well.

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_Don't __fav/alert without reviewing, please and thanks!_

_I'll update soon, if I get 5 reviews._

_Vicky xx_


	2. Changes

_Chapter 2:_

_Dedicated to fading daylight (Maddie) for being such an awesome gal on RoseScorpius Fans forum & because she is reading MV because I asked her to…sorry about the name mess up, hon!_

_**I don't own anything**_

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Claire stepped out of the changing room in one of the dressing up shops in Morganville (evidently the town was filled with alter egos because there were at least four of them around) with a scowl on her face. "I look like a little kid playing dress up," she moaned to Eve, who had stepped out looking like a supermodel.

"You do _not_, especially when Auntie Eve will sort your make up and hair out – you'll look like a proper witch," Eve laughed, moving some of Claire's hair out of the way so it made her look as if she wasn't twelve again. "Now, how do I look?" she motioned to her own outfit, which made her look like the reincarnation of Catwoman and didn't exactly help Claire's self confidence.

"You look hot, which is what you were going for, I'm sure," Claire grinned, in turn getting her hair ruffled by Eve. "What? You _ruffled my hair_?" she snapped in outrage.

"You're the one who said you look like a little kid; all I did was back that up," Eve responded. "Nah, I'm just kidding CB, you look fantastic. Now, hurry up and get changed so I can buy these outfits and then go dissuade our boyfriends from wearing the most ridiculous outfits."

Claire sighed but walked back into the changing room and began to change back into her normal clothes, regretting the plan that Shane has refused to change for him to be wearing a vampire hunter's outfit. There were hundreds of people in Morganville who wear them every year, yet she knew that _Shane_ wearing one of those wouldn't go down well whatsoever. She had lost count of how many times he had been arrested or accused of attacking vampires, sometimes (but not often) this being a false charge but, on the whole, him being the human known for being the most anti-vampire. Michael, Eve and she had tried to make him realise that it was ironic for Michael to dress like that (since, hello, vampire) but the minute _he_ stepped out with a stake, he would be arrested.

"Hurry up in there, CB, are you texting lover boy?" Eve yelled through the curtain after a few minutes, waking Claire from her reverie she had fallen into.

"Coming!" she called through, yanking her top on over her head. "Look, see, I'm almost done now! Do you want to know anything else about my getting dressed or is seeing me enough?" with that, she yanked the curtain open to reveal her dressed self to Eve.

"No need for a little hissy fit, Claire, I can see you're here," Eve, Queen of drama, decided to say to Claire, resulting in the raising of Claire's eyebrows. "Now, hand that over, Miss I-can-raise-my-eyebrows, so I can pay for it, unless you want to…" she trailed off as Claire handed the outfit straight out to her, having _no_ intention of paying for her own outfit when someone who earned more money than her (Myrnin didn't exactly pay top dollar for her services) was offering.

When Eve had paid, they walked out of the shop and headed home, each step taking them closer to finding out what their respective partners would be wearing for the party. Claire's heart sunk as she reached the front of the Glass House, wondering what the hell Shane would have gotten to store his stakes and knives in – as she knew Shane and now he had said he was going as a vampire hunter, there was no stopping him.

It was just wondering where he would stop.

"So, guess what I'm wearing!" Shane jumped out on the girls as they walked into the house, resulting in them both dropping their bags and screaming. He was the scariest thing Claire had ever seen, fake blood (or at least she _hoped_ it was fake) dripping from his clothes which were horrific. All over the front of the shirt, he had "we hate vampires" written, completing the look with a cloak akin to that of a vampire's apart from the way hastily drawn stakes were all over the front and inside was laden with real stakes…and silver knives.

"Holy _crap_, Shane, what the hell are you wearing?" Eve was the first to recover, slamming the door shut on the off chance that there could have been a vampire running down the street and just so happened to want to spy in the Glass House. "You're actually crazy, you know, absolutely fricking mental! You'll be dead before you even _get_ to the party, with the vampires in this town."

"Chill out!" was all Shane could respond with, waving his hands in the air to calm her down. Unfortunately, all this did was show even more weapons wrapped around his waist, which resulted in Claire stepping around him and walking through the house without a word.

How could he be so _stupid_? As she walked away, she heard him calling her name, sounding hurt, but she didn't care: he had just shown he had completely disregarded her wishes, as he did all the time. And she was _sick_ of it. She supposed that she should be used to it now, since she'd gone out with him for so long, but she wasn't. in fact, it only made her angrier, that she had to modify her wishes for _him_, that he got into so many of the most ridiculous situations and she had to both bail him out and forgive him.

She'd had enough.

"_No_, Shane!" she snapped, whirling around as he approached. "I'm _sick_ of this! You never listen to me; you only do what _you_ want! I don't…I don't think I can deal with this anymore." She whispered the last bit, her eyes filling with tears as she looked at him.

Instantly, his face seemed to crumple as he looked down at her, concentrating on nothing but her. "You're breaking up with me over a _costume_?" he sounded both outraged and shocked at the same time, especially as she nodded slowly.

"Not just the costume, Shane, but what it symbolises," she explained her nod, taking a step backwards until she felt the banister behind her back. "You do what you want and I do what I want. We don't need each other anymore, you know that better than I do. So go wear your costume, Shane, and dodge the vampires. It's what you love. Unfortunately, that's not me."

And, with that, she ran up the stairs, wiping the tears from her eyes as Shane continued to stand there, unable to move with shock.

…

He didn't try to talk to her that night, for which she was thankful. Though she knew she had had to do it, it didn't make it hurt any less and if he had came near her, she was sure she would have abandoned her resolve and just let him back into her arms. By the next morning, however, she was fully sure that she had made the right decision, even if that wasn't something Shane agreed with – Shane or the rest of the Glass House.

As she reached the bottom of the stairs, she found her outfit still in the bag, hanging on the bottom of the banister. It was the outfit she would have to wear to the party in six days – alone, since she didn't have a date after last night. It was her own fault but she couldn't help but feel a little wistful that she didn't have someone to protect her incase things went bad: she was strong enough to hold her own against one young vampire, but not against a whole crowd of probably centuries old ones. Even though Shane would be the one causing the issues with how he was planning to be dressed, he would have at least had a spare stake for her.

"Hey, CB," Eve sounded her usual self as Claire walked into the kitchen, pouring the girl a coffee before she could even ask. "Extra milk and sugar, as you like," she smiled, almost to help the girl feel better about what she did.

"You…you don't think I was wrong last night, do you?" she whispered to Eve, her eyes turned to the table.

"You did what is right for you, Claire, which is all I'd expect my girl to do," was the response she got. "It'll hurt for a bit, but you'll get over it and you'll be friends before you know it," Eve continued, plonking some toast down in front of Claire.

"Thanks."

"No problem. Right, well, eccentric boss man phoned and said he needed my help setting up the Monster to take it over to the party site – evidently he won't be able to go a night without coffee – so I better get on with that," Eve said, her tone as cheery as before – probably something to do with the fact she had had almost an entire pot of coffee and it was 11am. "Gotta hate the man, but he pays better than TPU did, so who's to complain?"

"You, since you do every day," for the first time that day, Claire said something that resembled her usual self and that had Eve smiling instantly.

"Well, nice to know that you know me, CB," she ruffled the girl's hair as she walked out. "I'll be back later, kay? Shane went out and Michael's still in bed, lazy bugger, so you get the experience of being home alone." The mocking tone to her voice was meant in a humorous manner, which had Claire laughing despite herself.

"Sure will, Miss mother-of-the-nest," she replied, yelling the last bit through as Eve unlocked the front door. "Bye!"

Now, she thought wryly, she had the full day spare.

Or did she?

…

Within three or four minutes of thinking that, her mobile chimed with the unmistakable sound of a text. Heaving herself up and dodging the pile of clothes that Eve had decided were not suitable for her to wear anymore and would suit the little kids down to the ground for Halloween – literally, some of the kids were so short, you wouldn't be able to see them in some of Eve's attire – she reached the place she dumped her mobile yesterday morning and picked it up.

_Claire, I require someone to decide what outfit Bob shall wear to the party. Come over now – I shall send a portal for your dear self._

_Yours_

_Myrnin_

Well, that was what she _thought_ it said: unfortunately, Myrnin was yet to have fully understood how to operate a mobile phone and ended up pressing the wrong letter in his haste to send the message. But once she figured out the translation, her heart sank; was she _seriously_ going to have to help Myrnin dress his _spider_ for the party?

_Do I _have_ to?_

She sent that and flopped back down on the sofa, burying her head under a cushion that smelt of Shane, something she didn't want to smell. So she lifted her head and stood up, looking around the room for something that didn't remind her of the boyfriend she had dumped – the only thing she found was the guitar of Michael's.

Picking it up, she began to strum, just as Michael had shown her the other week…just as the portal opened. "Claire, you're supposed to be dressing Bob for the party rehearsal, not playing that piece of utter rubbish," Myrnin called through in a cheery voice, only poking his head through. "Hurry, child, I haven't all day – I have work to be doing, as do you, you know!"

She set the guitar down and sighed before following Myrnin through the portal into his lab, where she was faced with the sight of Bob moving frantically around the lab, an array of different coloured cloaks on the work bench nearest his cage. "I'm going no closer," she announced, stopping about ten metres away from the spider. "If you think I'm going to go nearer than this to a _spider_, you're crazed," she continued, her eyes narrowing as she could tell Myrnin was thinking of pushing her forwards.

"How you are ever going to be a good scientist is beyond me when you cannot even abide to touch a spider," he chastised. "Especially a spider who, Amelie said, is a guest of honour at the party that we are all to attend…" he trailed off as Claire groaned internally, knowing she was going to be subjected to spending time with a spider.

"Well what are you wearing?" she inquired suspiciously. "As Amelie said that _everyone_ has to dress up and I'm pretty sure that she meant you more than she did Bob…so what are you planning to wear?"

"An alchemist never reveals his plans before they are ready to be revealed – and that includes costumes," he told her, a deadly serious tone to his voice. "You shall find out at the party, after all. Now, tell me dear, are there any plans from the human factions to launch rebellions?" he sounded as if he actually believed that _Claire_ would know if there were to be any.

"Firstly, why the hell would I know?" she asked indignantly, unable to be any form of polite towards him when he could accuse her of knowing that. "Secondly, why would we bother? I mean, things are relatively normal in Morganville – to fight would be futile!" she continued.

"Amelie assures me that every year since Morganville began, All Hallow's Eve – or Halloween, to coin the modern day term – has been a night of struggling for power from the humans, including ones she never expected," he informed her gravely, sitting down on his special chair. As he put his spectacles on, she could no longer take him seriously, a man in his mid-twenties physically, dressed like a cross between a Victorian and a modern day surfer, who felt it nice to wear reading spectacles, not that he needed them.

"Well this year will be different," Claire insisted, confident of this answer. Why would people fight when they had gotten things that they had never had before, like equality in so many more fields than this time last year?

"You have never been in Morganville on the night of All Hallow's Eve, Claire, or at least in the town," he reminded her gravely, since her only other Halloween in Morganville was before she met the Glass House residents. "Whilst I may have only limited knowledge of the intensity of the modern day riots, this being second hand knowledge from Amelie and the imbecile, I remember those of the days of the beginning of Morganville. And I can assure you there were people you would not expect to be involved."

"So you automatically assumed that _I_ would be?" she was astounded that her boss, her _friend_, could consider her to be a possible leader of a resistance against vampires to be held on the most stereotypical day of the year for that to happen. "Well, you've got no need to worry, Myrnin. I've got no interest in hurting any vampire, unless they try and kill me. _Then_ the battle is on."

He chuckled as he smiled, yet the smile never quite reached his eyes, as per usual for when science had no involvement in the conversation. "I would expect nothing less from you, little one, nothing less at all. Just be careful you don't get mixed up in dangerous groups, that's all," his tone turned to near concerned, which was unique since Myrnin was nearly never worried.

And then she knew she should be running and screaming.

…

The stock piles of stakes were being dug out of their hiding places of so many residents of Morganville's homes: some were being cut out of the lining of curtains, some being removed from hollow legs in furniture whilst others still were being brought up from beneath the floorboards.

The preparation for All Hallow's Eve was underway.

Knives were being sharpened and costumes arranged to conceal all weapons in handy places. The new rules about being able to carry stakes in the street was being used to the extreme, cauldrons usually used to be filled with the sweets given in trick-or-treating were being reused in mass stake cartels, a handy source for the battle that these humans knew would happen.

Planning had begun shortly after Bishop's fall from power, the plot to decide which vampires to target thickening as moral issues began to raise from the question – some of the intended had helped them in the past, were their friends in some cases. However, the plan was the most important of things, even more important than relationships.

No matter what Amelie thought, this was not a year that would bring peace. They would _not_ fall under the submission of vampires _ever_ and this party wouldn't change anything.

No, they were fighting harder than ever.

And they were fighting to _win_.

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_So, thoughts for this chapter?_

_Don't__ fav/alert without reviewing, please & thanks. Or read and not review :D_

_5 more reviews for an update_

_Vicky xx_


	3. Beginning

_Chapter 3:_

_Thanks for the reviews_

_DaniellaR – sorry, but you've read some of my other stuff and you should know by now that ShaneClaire does not even register in my mind as a pairing, let alone one that should be written about lots, so yeah…sorry, but NOT ShaneClaire!_

_**I don't own anything!**_

* * *

The day of All Hallow's Eve passed without qualm, the day relatively sunny for the end of October with no new issues raised between the vampires and the humans. Last minute preparations of people attending the party occurred, hair and makeup being particular points of interest to be sorted before they had to mingle with vampires at the party.

Sunny it may have been, it didn't hold Amelie back from directing the way she wanted the party to be organised, directing where she wanted certain tables, the food and even where people were to be seated. She ignored every whispered word of doubt between Oliver and Myrnin – who were agreed on something for once – and focused simply on ensuring the party would run as smoothly as it possibly could do with preparations made earlier. She had what she thought were adequate contingency plans incase a fight occurred, had catered for varying appetites, and had arranged the segregation of certain areas to be entirely human or vampire for comfort of those who were particularly unhappy to be present.

She would soon find out whether or not it was enough.

"Either help or go home and hide in your little ghetto, Myrnin," she finally snapped as she turned around to find him fiddling with the table name cards, so now sworn enemies had been seated next to one another. "The same goes for you also, Oliver, if you continue to feel the desire to side against me," she continued as she noticed Oliver doing nothing to prevent Myrnin's messing with the name places.

Rolling his eyes, Oliver nodded and pulled Myrnin away from the table. "You're right. I have no desire to be part of this pointless charade for a moment longer than I am required to be. This can only end badly. Do the logical thing, Amelie, and cancel this before the bloodshed is too great to be ignored."

As he walked away alongside Myrnin, Amelie shook her head, unable to believe both that they were unanimous in their beliefs on something as well as that he could be right.

Pity that she didn't listen to him, isn't it?

…

Claire tied the bracelet around her wrist before surveying her appearance in the mirror: the witches costume _did_ look better on her now that Eve had made her look at least her age, if not with the addition of a couple of years, and it didn't hurt that the shoes were entirely flat – she wasn't ever going to be tall and, in Morganville, Claire felt practicality was more important than fashion. Not that that would be stopping Eve wearing the 6" heels she had bought for the occasion, declaring that she would rather _die_ than look like crap when Monica would be there. Unfortunately, Claire thought, there was more chance of the former happening even with the shoes.

"CB, you ready?" Eve yelled up the stairs, startling Claire as she fluffed her hair up a tad.

"Yeah, coming!" she replied, grabbing her bag – complete with a little bottle of holy water just incase anything went down – before running down the stairs to join Eve and Michael. Shane was on his way there straight from work, as he had had to work during the day, and it meant that the journey would be less awkward – whilst Eve and Michael didn't completely understand why she had snapped when she did, they respected her decision to split with Shane and didn't pressure her into explaining it, like Shane had been trying to.

"Ready to go to the social highlight of the season?" Eve asked her in a mock-cheery voice, injecting a level of sarcasm into the conversation.

"Eve," Michael frowned as he took her arm, knowing that beginning the night negatively would end up with there being more chance of violence. "You know that you can't say anything like that there-"

"Which is why I'm getting it out of my system now, baby," she grinned back at him, her lips painted a vivid red that could only remind Claire of blood. "After all, you don't want me accidentally letting anti-Amelie or anti-vampire thing slip out of my mouth, do you?"

He shook his head, yet the movement being more of a movement of disbelief at what she could be saying, and then turned to look at Claire. "You got the same impression as Goth girl here, or do you have plans to make it through the night?" he addressed her, his tone deathly serious.

All Claire did was unzip her bag and show him the bottle of holy water inside, something that didn't exactly make him jump from the ceilings with joy. "I got protecting myself covered, if that's what you mean."

And, with that, she walked out of the door.

There were still the dregs of the sun outside, yet nothing that would cause Michael any harm, something that wasn't the worst thing in the world since it still afforded Claire and Eve some light as they walked over to the car.

"Got the invitations?" Michael confirmed to Claire as they all got in and he started it.

"No, I decided to rip them to shreds and feed them to our invisible dog so that we didn't have to go – of _course_ I've got the invites," she rolled her eyes as she fed the story to him, her tone heavily laden with sarcasm.

"Did I ask for that?" he shot back, zooming down the road now he was positive that there were the three invites in her possession. "No, we're going to a party where nobody wants to be, so there's going to be enough kicking off without your idiotic comments!" he continued, startling both Eve and Claire.

"Honey, do you know something we don't?" Eve asked, not sounding particularly happy with Michael's tone, but half expecting there to be something going on that they weren't privy to.

"No, I just don't want there to _be_ anything, okay?" he replied, breathing deeply. "We barely made it through the last human _and_ vampire versus vampire fight; I hardly doubt we have stellar luck for the rest of the year. Before, we had vampires on our side – hell, we had some of the _strongest_ vampires on our side – so to have to end up fighting against them would probably not be the best idea," as he spoke, he sounded as if he had calmed down at least a touch from the sky-high with anger that had came out of nowhere.

"I get it, Michael, I do, but I think you should be telling _Shane_ this, not us," Claire reminded him gently, gripping her bag tightly as they began to near towards their destination of Founder's Square. "After all, we're the ones who normally get _out_ of the mess, not the other way around."

Michael couldn't help but snort and Eve had to smile as Claire spoke. "Honey, I hate to break it to you, but _you're_ a danger magnet as well," Eve told her gently. "I guess we all are."

"Yeah," Michael agreed, his voice solemn once again. "And that's what makes things so dangerous. Now, come on. We're here."

…

Things were as she wanted, Amelie decided as she looked around the party that was already beginning to come to life. For the most part, she noticed with a frown, the vampires and humans were staying in their segregated areas, the only notable exceptions (of course) being the Glass House children. Due to their mixed human and vampire status, of course this was the only sector they could be in, and they were the only ones. The fourth, most troublesome (and none of them were particularly trouble free), member had yet to join them and the three were taking advantage of the lack of queue for, what Amelie had arranged herself, the best buffet of the three.

"Amelie, is there anything that they are to do or do you just want them to stay in their little areas all night?" Oliver, naturally, approached her with a bored tone to his voice, studying his nails as he spoke to her.

"Allow them to move in their own time," she decided as she looked down, smoothing her pale pink dress subconsciously. With the tiara in her blonde hair and the curled nature of said hair, she looked as if she could pass for the princesses seen in books, which was the look she had chosen to take for Halloween dressing up. Meanwhile, Oliver had been slightly more traditional and gone for the Grim Reaper, having found a perfect costume in his wardrobe.

"And we are to do what whilst we wait?" he continued, watching alongside her from the window of the Elder's Council building as the party unfolded beneath them.

"We drink," she motioned for a glass of champagne to be handed to Oliver, having decided that blood was not an appropriate choice of appetizer for an event where humans were invited as equals. "And perhaps watch as things begin to occur. I have a strong feeling that Myrnin shall show up shortly and begin to embarrass himself," she took a small sip of her own flute of champagne before allowing herself a small smile.

Who else would turn up?

…

The food was pretty good, Claire had to admit, and the space around them was pretty extraordinary. In the hour she had been there so far, there hadn't been a single person venture into the mixed human and vampire section besides the three of them and it was quite peaceful. It also made Michael relax a bit because it meant that there was less chance of trouble kicking off between the different factions of people.

"So, what do we do for the next however many hours before Amelie admits defeat and allows us all to leave?" Claire asked the other two as they finished eating.

"Firstly, we wait for Shane – who should be here by now," Eve frowned as she figured out times and knew that he should have arrived at least forty minutes ago. "Then we see where the party takes us, most likely leaving us sitting here on our Todd for the next three or four hours. Oh look…isn't that your boss, the crazy dude?" she sounded slightly more interested as she spied Myrnin moving through the gaggle of vampires to move into the joint bit.

"Oh dear _god_," Claire groaned, banging her head on the table dramatically. "He brought Bob…and he's wearing a _cape_."

Dressed as a stereotypical Transylvanian vampire with the cape with purple lining, Myrnin walked slowly forwards, holding a leash on the end of which was Bob. But not to complete the look as just being semi normal (though when a vampire dresses as a vampire, it shows something about their ego), he had bunny slippers on his feet and had slipped a pair of bunny ears on his head. Part of Claire wanted to look and see if he had remembered the tail before she banged her head again, wondering why she had to put up with things like that.

"Now, last time I had a word with the doctor at the hospital – which was for _you_, dear Claire – I don't recall him informing me that self harming in such a violent manner was particularly good for your health," he told Claire in an amused tone, sitting down opposite the three of them fluidly. His curly brown hair was poofed up in the air slightly, his skin covered in a base that didn't make his already pale skin much darker, and Claire could see more than she wanted to with the gape in his billowing shirt.

"And last time I checked, it wasn't the appropriate practise for any sane person to bring their pet _spider_ to a party, much less dressed up," Claire shot back, unable to help herself as she looked up from the table.

"The main word in there was _sane_, Claire," he reminded her, his tone making Eve giggle. "What is it, Goth Girl? Did I say something particularly funny?"

She couldn't respond, simply continued to laugh, even as another vampire stepped through the invisible barrier between their segregated area and the shared focal point of the party. Sam.

"Hey, Sam!" Claire called, deliberately ignoring Myrnin and his absolutely pointless drivel that was spewing out of his mouth. "How come you're down here with the commoners?" she continued, simply making it obvious what was public knowledge about him and Amelie.

His skin turned as red as a vampire's could go, his going further because of his natural pre-disposition to flame up brighter due to his hair colour, as he headed across to the motley party of four. "Shhh, you don't need to yell it," he whispered, sitting down next to Myrnin and throwing him a worried glance as the elder vampire began to mutter protectively to Bob. "But I'm not with her because she's off doing something for the organising of the party and I volunteered to be in charge of making sure that things were pretty in order in this bit…but there's no problem, I don't think," he smiled slightly, his eyes roaming around the expanse of grass on the off chance people may suddenly appear from nowhere and start causing problems.

"I don't think there's going to be an issue," Claire agreed, a small smile on her lips as she looked around. "There's only the five of us now – _yes_, Myrnin, and Bob the spider – and I don't really think that there's going to be any trouble."

As she spoke, something flew through the air from the human quarter and straight through the neutral middle ground, right into the vampire's area, hitting one of them straight in the heart. They crumpled straight over and she could only presume that it was a stake or an arrow of some sort that penetrated through.

Instantly, an uproar began, murmurings of dissent on the vampire's side as they prepared to attack the humans back mere seconds after the attack.

Sam raised an eyebrow, almost as if he expected this, and shrugged. "You were saying?"

* * *

_Of course, Claire's the bad luck talisman – don't have her say anything if you don't want it to happen!_

_Give me another 8 reviews and I'll update :D_

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_Vicky xx_


	4. Burning Banner

_Chapter 4:_

_**I don't own anything**_

_So, yeah, I read Last Breath today and I have some serious issues with the end of it, like SERIOUSLY. So, as soon as I've written __**fading daylight**__ a birthday fic for Saturday, I shall be starting this new fic._

_Hope you'll all read it. XD_

* * *

"Are you _serious_?" Claire muttered as she stood up, suddenly realising how dangerous the table in the middle of two now warring camps could be. Of course crap would go down – that was what they had all thought when they found out about the party, some more vocal in their disapproval than others – and now they, the only peaceful ones in the entire town, were in the middle of it.

"I did tell you not to say anything, Claire," Sam said, frowning as he looked at the camp of vampires and silently willed them to stay silent and _not to react_.

"No you didn't," Claire shot back, going back through the conversation in her head to realise that he didn't say that.

"Now, I don't really think this is the appropriate location or time to start an argument over whether someone said something or not," Myrnin, naturally, jumped into the conversation and tried to calm things down with his insane edge…something that didn't really work. "But I think that we should get out of here, if we want to escape before the fighting starts."

Claire shook her head, her eyes roaming over the humans at the front of their 'section' as she tried to see if Shane was in there. "No, we can't leave without Shane," she objected, knowing that, even though they had split up, she wouldn't be able to live with herself if she left him to get embroiled in a fight.

"Uh, Claire, that may be a bit harder than you'd think," Eve muttered as she caught sight of someone in the exact costume that Shane had worn. "Dammit, why did they _all_ have to come as damned vampire hunters and not be a bit original?" she continued, stamping her feet as Claire presumed she lost sight of Shane.

"He's…he's in _there_?" she couldn't help but sound shocked as she motioned towards the gaggle of humans all pulling their first round of weapons out of their hiding places. Not that some of them were particularly well hidden, Claire thought savagely, as she saw some stakes being removed from cauldrons carried by the rebels.

"_Dammit_, Shane," Michael growled as he caught sight of their friend, Claire instantly turning her attention to the spot where Michael's gaze was trained on…he was there, standing…holding the crossbow that had been used to kill the vampire in his hands.

"He…_he_ started this?" she couldn't help but sound shocked as the reality that their Shane had not only gotten involved, but fired the first shot. _He_ had invoked the fight, not any of the other anti-vampire people in town – but Shane.

"Looks that way, Claire," Sam agreed grimly, his phone ringing suddenly. "This'll be Amelie…hello," he answered the phone after he spoke to the others, moving across slightly towards the vampire sector, which was continuing to prepare for the attack they would be launching.

Claire sighed and sat back down, even though this wasn't the greatest of ideas since they ought to have been running away as fast as possible. "Why does this have to happen?" she groaned, burying her head in her arms again.

Nobody answered.

…

_What_? This was the only word that would form itself in Amelie's mind, the only thing that made even the slightest bit of sense amidst the scrambling her brain tried to do to comprehend _why_ this had happened. She had organised everything so that this _wouldn't_ happen, had hoped that the opportunity for segregation would allow there to be the first year with a lack of violence towards one another.

She turned to Oliver who, naturally, had an expression on his face akin to "I told you so" as she looked at him. "You have no need to look at me like that, Oliver, I am able to see that I was incorrect in my judgements," she sighed, motioning for her guards to approach her. "Let me ring Samuel and discover any other hidden dangers before we head down there," she accepted the phone from the guard and began to dial before Oliver could say one word.

"You mean the man who was supposed to ensure that this _didn't_ happen?" he confirmed, almost incredulous in his tone. "Are you out of your mind with love that you feel he will have an accurate idea as to what occurred?"

Her eyes narrowed as she surveyed him. "I would trust Samuel with my life, Oliver, something which is not true for yourself," she snapped back, dialling the final number before raising it to her ear.

Her side of the call was not particularly informative to the others in the room, simply her asking questions with responses too quiet for even them to hear. She quickly ascertained that the instigator was indeed Shane Collins, as she had suspected from this distance, and that the preparations for an attack on both sides were well underway, the humans having come ready prepared for such an attack. It was a pre-meditated attack launched by those rebel humans she thought had learned what teamwork was all about, that they needed to cooperate for Morganville to exist safely.

"Let us leave and assist our people in this fight," Amelie decided, knowing that the plan she had put in place for if this occurred had to be followed – she had to launch a counter attack upon the humans, show them that their actions would not go unpunished no matter their numbers she had to punish. After all, the invitation stated such unpleasantries would occur if such events broke out; something she now realised was inevitable. They would never accept a peaceful environment…no, now they had to fight and fight to the bitter end.

Oliver, naturally, snorted and sounded as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing. "_You_ fight?" he confirmed verbally as she walked towards the door, having hung up on Samuel. "You mean to tell me that you, _Amelie_, have plans for fight against the humans you love so dearly?"

She snapped at him then, unable to believe that he would question her at this moment in time. "If you happened to have missed the attack upon our people mere minutes ago, then I would perhaps excuse such an inappropriate question. However, you didn't, therefore, pray tell me why you would ask such a thing of me? I assured the invitees that if they were to cause trouble, they would be dealt with harshly; I see no method harsher than rooting out those causing trouble from the source, do you?"

"And what if they try to attack you?" he growled, suddenly standing next to her.

"Then we fight back and decimate every last one of them," she assured him, standing her ground against him. "This is _my_ town, Oliver; _I_ make the decisions, not you. You have the chance to oppose me normally, yet I shall _not_ tolerate your disobeying me on this occasion."

He nodded as she swept from the room without another word, following in silence after her succession of bodyguards all keen to ensure their Founder is not injured…not that she would be, by Oliver.

As she walked, she regretted the actions that should have to be taken when she arrived, particularly against the Collins boy. Yet she could do nothing but follow through on her word: she was the Founder; when she made a decision, she had to stick to it, even if it broke her heart to do it.

Even if it hurt those whom she loved.

…

"Are they preparing to move?" Claire looked up and surveyed the humans, none of whom looked particularly happily in their direction. For the simple fact that they hadn't chosen their sides, it most likely made them fit in with the humans to the vampires, and the vampires to the humans.

"Probably," Michael said through clenched teeth, his eyes darting around Founder's Square faster than Claire could keep up with. "And we're right in the firing line."

"Then why don't we get off?" Myrnin, ever the coward who valued his own life, suggested, hoisting himself to his feet. "Bob is getting rather tired and I have to get him to bed."

"Sit," Eve ordered sharply, pushing him down. "We're in the thick of it now and your cracked up jokes about wanting to leave _aren't_ funny," she continued, poking him in the chest violently to make him react as she wanted him to.

"Eve, you may want to stop that," Claire warned, watching Myrnin get more than slightly angry.

"Get _down_," Sam hissed suddenly as bullets fired out from the human camp towards the vampires, not aimed at them…but they were right in the middle of the now battlefield. "_Dammit_, Amelie, how long does it take?" he shouted but Claire figured that it was more to himself and the volume was a mere showing of how frustrated he was.

The fire ended and Claire rolled to her feet cautiously, pulling her sleeve down over her wrist to ensure the bracelet that marked her as the Founder's 'pet' was hidden incase the humans (hopefully) didn't know who she was. Not that she was particularly reliant on that plan: Shane was with _them_ and he wouldn't hesitate to rat her out, even if it wasn't obvious from the present company she was in.

She turned to her right to see the procession towards the centre of the field of Amelie, the head of a party of thirty to forty vampires. For the first time since that fatal arrow to the heart mere minutes ago – minutes that felt like hours – Claire had a chance to feel a little happiness, a little relief, some hope that perhaps it could all go away without more bloodshed.

"Go," Amelie told Sam as she reached him, her one word sentence barely loud enough for Claire to hear from mere metres away. The panic and fear for him was all to evident to Claire as she stood there, something that was worrying incase attacks against the Founder were launched and he would be used as a weapon.

"No, I'm staying here," as stubborn as always, all he did was take a step back and join forces with Claire, Eve and Michael, Myrnin standing somewhere inbetween his _dear lady_ and the girl he loved.

The fury in Amelie's eyes was evident even to Claire as they lingered upon her for half a fleeting second before lying upon those traitorous towards her – if Claire had gotten such a chill from such a short time, she couldn't imagine what the humans – _Shane_ – were suffering through.

"You have disobeyed the rules I set for this party to occur," Amelie said in the coldest voice Claire had ever heard her speak in. "I promised that punishments would be harsh and so they shall be. Those of you who have stood against us in arms shall be punished by the Elder's Council…those who have initiated attacks shall be punished ever more severely."

With a barely stifled scream, Claire realised what this meant for Shane – and she had no leverage now she had split up with him. Before, she could have gotten him out of it _perhaps_ with the citing of him as her boyfriend, but all he was to her now was a housemate and a friend, not things Amelie particularly valued under the best of times.

And certainly not when he had killed a vampire in cold blood.

"Lay down your weapons and perhaps the situation can be more peaceful than if you do not," Amelie continued, her voice harsher than before. "If not…then I cannot say that the delicate balance of peace we have had until this moment can continue. And I shall give full permission to fight."

Claire had to admit, Amelie knew what she was doing. After all, she thought, the woman couldn't have been around for centuries looking _that_ good without knowing some basic survival techniques.

She strained her neck to look over at the humans who were now frantically discussing the offer made towards them, as were the vampires on their side – though they hadn't received any deal.

The sound of a match being lit startled her back to the human camp, where a flaming banner was being thrown in the air.

And, on it, Claire could read:

**VAMPIRES SUCK.**

**KILL THEM ALL.**

And Claire couldn't help but think that this was perhaps the stupidest thing she had ever heard in her life.

_Thoughts?_

_8 more reviews, thanks guys._

_Don't__ fav/alert without reviewing please and thanks._

_Vicky xx_


	5. Stakes Ahoy

_Chapter 5:_

_**I don't own anything**_

* * *

"I believe that leaving may be the best idea," Amelie said to the five people standing to her side in the centre of the battlefield, her eyes trained on the human rebels with a furious intensity. "After all, I believe you all had plans to make it through this year, and staying shall only reduce those odds most dramatically," she continued, ignoring the protests of Myrnin and Sam next to her.

"I want to fight," Myrnin shot back, resulting in Amelie rolling her eyes. Why she put up with his idiocy was beyond her; why she had put up with it for almost a millennia was an entirely different question.

"You are, to be frank, insane," Amelie responded, her eyes narrowing as she heard Oliver begin to issue orders – honestly, she didn't mind. He was a rather successful warrior and she had no desire to order the battle troops into action against other citizens of the town. No she would leave that to him. "Therefore, you stay out of this. Otherwise, you shall simply be an easy target, no matter _how_ old you may be. Is that clear?"

"It's about as clear as your reasons for fighting in the first place," Myrnin muttered under his breath, infuriating Amelie beyond belief – not only was he refusing to leave but he was insulting her reasons for battle.

Then again, she had to concede, she had set this party up as a method by which to ensure that everyone in the town would be there in a peaceful manner, so to begin attacks may have seemed slightly contradictory. However, there was a clear line in her mind between acceptable behaviour and that which, if left not dealt with, could lead to another disaster.

So, with a heavy heart, she turned back towards the back lines to plan the attack, not wanting to fight against those who she governed – Oliver could lead that side of things. Already, she could hear the retreat of those humans _not_ involved in the rebellion, those who were the innocent in the situation, like the children usually on Halloween.

Unfortunately, she knew that some of them would die. It was the way of things in Morganville.

And she regretted it.

…

Claire stood with the others and refused to move even after Amelie had ordered it. After all, _Shane_ was over there still and no matter what he had done, he was still their friend and they had to protect him somehow. Whilst they had to go in on the vampire's side, something which may not have gone down well with their fellow humans, she knew they all (perhaps not Myrnin, who wasn't his greatest advocate) had to fight to get Shane out of there…not that they probably _would_, mind, since everything was his fault.

"What do we do now then?" Claire muttered under her breath, reaching around her outfit to find the weapons she had. _Not_ that they would be particularly useful since she was going to be up against humans and she had a gut feeling that she wouldn't be hurting anyone…no, if anyone was going to get hurt, it would be her.

"We're going to fight them, of course!" Myrnin said cheerfully, almost sounding as if he was going to find this the best experience ever.

She couldn't help but roll her eyes at this, still able to remember him mere minutes ago. "Myrnin, you wanted to _run away_ not long ago, so why do you want to fight now?" she asked him exasperatedly. "Make your damned mind up whether you want to be a coward or an egotistical vampire who wants to kill people and _stick there_!" she continued, her voice getting sharper with each and every word that came out of her mouth.

"Ok, Claire, there's no need to be so snappy," Myrnin sounded genuinely hurt as he planted his feet into the ground right next to her, not moving an inch. "But I think you need to be careful – you and Miss Goth Girl – because they're not going to take kindly to you as humans going in there and trying to rescue your little boyfriend," the hurt tone continued through the latter part of his almost speech to her, making her realise that someone had told her the truth: he loved her.

That wasn't the issue then; the issue was getting Shane out of there alive before then all of them clearing the hell away from Founder's Square before they got trampled or burned alive – you could never tell what the next plan was in Morganville.

"Kay, we'll be careful," she said dismissively in response, not wanting to ignore him but not wanting to say something that he could then construe to result in her and Eve being shipped off to the safe house somewhere that she knew Amelie had incase of a tornado – for VIP vampires only, of course. "Sam, what should we-" she was cut off by Myrnin throwing himself over her and knocking her to the ground as Oliver yelled something that had both sides charging at one another in an almost medieval style battle. As she looked up, she could see that Michael had done the same to Eve and that Sam was on the floor beside them, not wanting to attack humans when he fought for their civil rights so much but not wanting to be out of the action like Amelie was. He had his family to protect with him, after all, and if they were going into the thick of it, he was going too.

Claire somehow managed to roll herself, even with Myrnin on top of her in protective mode, to see the most vicious of attacks going on. Normally, she would have pitted the vampires to win, no question, but the sheer number of weapons on the human's side had vampire after vampire falling, almost the same amount as humans that fell. That was worrying: if they had built up such a stockpile, they could have taken the town at any time when all the vampires weren't together and able to fight – they could have picked them off one by one…and Shane would have started with Michael.

"Urgh," she tried to cover her eyes as she saw a vampire get decapitated merely thirty metres in front of her, but her hands were under her so she had to settle with covering her eyes. It didn't block the horrendous sounds of the falling of the head and body to the ground, though, or even the smell of the blood that was so clearly vampire getting into her nostrils.

"Time to move," Sam decided as he noticed the humans beginning to spread out, some heading in their direction with expressions that made him positive none of them wanted to come and hug him. "Eve and Michael, I'll come with you and we'll go that way – Myrnin and Claire, the other side," he directed, motioning with his hands where he wanted them to go.

Within a flash, Myrnin was on his feet and pulling Claire with him, handing her some of the weapons he had (quite obviously) invented himself. "None of these are lethal, my dear, as I felt that would be more your style," he explained as he handed her five different things. "One binds them with the flick of the switch – _no_, not here, otherwise you have wasted it – and the others knock them unconscious. Careful with this one; if you're not looking in the opposite direction, it affects you also and I highly doubt you wish to be captured with the rebels," he gave her the lowdown on all the things that she slipped into her pockets, only leaving the holy water in her purse because a) it was hard to get and b) she didn't want to be leaving almost little gift wrapped weapons for the rebels.

"Let's go," she said grimly and found Myrnin scooping her into his arms. "Holy _hell_, Myrnin, I didn't mean take me like this – you need to fight, remember?" she managed to get out before he had picked up his speed dramatically, already beginning to feel sick with the speed at which they had travelled for mere seconds.

He set her down and took her hand, running at the most human speed he could get – no matter how much she protested as they dodged as many of the humans as possible, he refused to release her, saying, "I know you and trouble, my dear, and if someone is not with you at all times, you'll be in the biggest mess before you can even say your name," as his reason why he refused to. And she had to admit that he was probably right on that account, no matter how much she wanted to deny it.

They reached the place where Sam had told them to go and immediately Myrnin was fighting the humans back from attacking Claire, dodging their attacks at him with a litheness that Claire could only attribute to his enormous age. All she did was stand there and hope that they didn't get through him – she could get maybe half of the thirty around them down, she thought, but that wouldn't stop her being killed violently by her own people, something that wouldn't be the greatest of ideas.

Approaching behind them was Sam, Michael and Eve, the latter who was being dragged along by Michael whilst Sam pushed the humans out of the way, not killing but not leaving them so that they could go attack another vampire either. Evidently in this war, being a vampire won out for him, though Claire couldn't exactly blame him – none of these humans were the ones that he was friends with; they had all gone home.

Whilst Myrnin fought with the odd kick in here and there from her, Claire's eyes scanned the fifty or so rebels remaining in their quadrant where she now stood, searching for Shane. She couldn't find him anywhere…until…until she could.

He was holding a stake that was shining with some sort of fluid on it, something that glistened in the fire that was now all around them. Fire torches were being flung at vampires, some of whom couldn't dodge them, and the entire place had an eerie feel to it: it was like the films, she thought, the ones where the attacks happened in the dead of night and electricity wasn't anywhere near. Yet when she looked at her watch, she saw it was only 10:30pm – they had another hour and a half to go before the end of All Hallow's Eve, _not_ that she expected surrender once the night was over.

"Shane!" she screamed his name as Sam reached her back, flinging a human away who Myrnin hadn't noticed approaching Claire so hard that the bones could be heard shattering.

"Careful, Claire," Sam warned her as Shane turned towards them, his eyes glistening with anger. The usual brown colour was black, illuminated by the burning red colour from the fire and she couldn't recognise him; not only were his clothes different, yet he seemed as if he belonged in this situation, as if he loved the idea of fighting vampires.

And then she noticed the match in his hand.

The stake was about to be set on fire – and she had a pretty good feeling petrol was covering it.

"Move!" he yelled back at her, trying to get her to move so he could get Myrnin, she presumed…but he was across the way, killing humans so frequently she had to wonder if he had ever lost his bloodlust.

The stake was on fire, the rapid burning spreading all the way down to the very tip, creating a burning weapon so dangerous it would kill almost any vampire instantly.

And it was headed for Sam.

"No!" she screamed as she realised Sam hadn't noticed, that he was too busy saving Eve's ass to move out of the way. _Sam_ couldn't die; he was the only pure one of the lot of them, she knew.

He turned around at the last minute to see the orange stake flying closer and closer towards him.

And then it hit a body.

* * *

_Thoughts?_

_Don't__ fav/alert or read without reviewing please & thanks._

_5 reviews & I'll update_

_Vicky xx_


	6. Disappearing

_Chapter 6:_

_**DEDICATED TO MADDIE (**__fading daylight__**) FOR HER BIRTHDAY TODAY!**_

_Vitzy, hon, you've got a _lot_ to catch up on here._

_And, everyone, thanks for your reviews…_

_**I don't own anything**_

* * *

…

"What do you want to do?" Oliver asked Amelie down the phone, deciding that it was easier to have her on call with a headset whilst he fought rather than run back to her and risk allowing the humans a chance to take advantage from the lack of a fighting leader's presence.

She hesitated as she stood on the edge of the Square, not wanting to order the destruction of _every_ human, yet wanting to prove that she was the Founder indeed and that her word was law. Already, her vampires were falling and faster than they perhaps would have if she had anticipated the lengths the humans were willing to go to - including giving their own lives – to rid the world of a few vampires. Their murder techniques were positively medieval, techniques she very infrequently used, and all it made her want to do was destroy them all.

"Kill all those who attack directly," she ordered finally, knowing she would go into the battle in a few moments, even if only to locate the group of people she ordered _not_ to participate. How could she live with herself if she let Sam continue to fight and then him die for her, when she loved him more than life itself? "Those injured and out of action, leave to be dealt with _after_ we secure the town, for the Council to punish them appropriately. Do you _understand_, Oliver?" she confirmed, her tone icily cold as she pressed him to understand that any deviation on her orders would not go down well.

"Kill those who attack me – like him, goodbye – but don't kill those already on the floor and dying, that is confirmed," he drawled down the phone, the swishing of the wind down the phone evident on how fast he was moving.

She nodded though he couldn't see that and waited, watching as vampire after vampire fell along with scores of humans. There were still so many more humans than vampires, no matter how many had been either killed or incapacitated, and she knew that things would soon be getting oh so much more dangerous.

In the distance, she could see the people she had been looking for throughout the entirety of the battle so far – a full thirty four minutes since the first ordered charge by Oliver had commenced – and none of them looked injured. Myrnin seemed to be protecting Claire adequately well, which was a positive since he had informed most of the population of Morganville about his love for her, and Sam seemed to be flitting between covering Claire and assisting Michael with Eve.

"Now, why you are still there, Sam?" she murmured to herself, her eyes narrowing as she followed their movements around.

"Did you say something?" Oliver asked, confused as to the meaning of her words.

"Nothing for your ears, Oliver, simply my own questioning," she replied smoothly, not taking her eyes away from the scene in front of her that was so clear, she may as well have been there entirely.

Then her eyes locked on their obvious target, Shane Collins, one of the instigators of the rebellion. He had been a loose canon for longer than she cared to remember, someone she only allowed to continue to be free for Claire, yet she evidently no longer cared for him in a romantic capacity. No, she only went to rescue him as a friend, which could have made all the difference.

She watched as the Collins boy realised that Claire was there, watched his reaction to finding the five of them who had gone to rescue him from the other humans who would be punished. She supposed Claire and the others theorised that she would allow him perhaps a little leniency if he wasn't found within the main group of humans (well, not Myrnin) but that would never be the case. Whether they knew that or not in their hearts was beyond her.

Her eyes spotted something in Shane's hands.

It was a stake, covered in petrol – she could tell from the way it glistened with the light of the fire around it. The way it dripped made her certain that, if lit, it would kill the person it hit, human or vampire, and it would be a painful death.

Then it was aimed towards the group of five who _were trying to protect him_ and Amelie knew that the real target was Myrnin; Shane knew how Myrnin felt towards Claire and he hated it. He wanted the man who could love Claire now he couldn't dead…but…but all Amelie could see was the stake being aimed haphazardly in the direction of a moving man.

The target he would hit would be _Sam_.

The feral cry that rang out from Amelie's mouth was indescribable; she began to race across the Square, racing for Sam to pull him to safety. But she knew in her heart that she was already too late, for the stake was midway through the air and that there was absolutely no chance that she could pull him to safety.

She was going to watch him die.

Tears clouded her eyes as the stake began to arch downwards, down towards the body of the man she loved. The flames seemed to thicken as they moved throughout the air, a bright beacon in the centre of one of the messiest battles she had ever seen, one of the first _major_ human vs vampire battles in the world's history. The individual licks of colour seemed to be oh so brash to Amelie as she raced towards them, wanting them to burn through her own skin if it meant that Sam could be spared from this.

She approached and nearly – _nearly_ – reached the group of them before the stake hit a body.

But it wasn't Sam.

_~x~_

Claire jumped as high as she could when she made the split decision: sacrifice herself for the good of the others, or allow Sam to die, when he had almost died mere months ago at the hands of Bishop?

So she made the decision to save Sam, for she perhaps had a second chance, and had less than a second of hanging in the air before the stake made contact with her skin.

The momentum drove it straight through, the fire spreading onto her costume as she screamed reflexively. Her body began to fall back down towards the ground, yet she found herself suddenly in the strong arms of Myrnin. As the stake came through her body, it seemed to stop just before the tip reached the back of her frame, stopped by the mass of ribs and sinew inside.

It had barely missed her heart – if she had been a little taller, the size of Myrnin, she would have been killed instantly. Yet the lack of exact placement simply elongated the agony as the fire began to catch into her internal organs, blood gushing out of the wound as her eyes began to roll near instantly.

All around them, the fight continued to occur, not stopping for one second even as the girl fell with a group around her.

"Claire," Amelie fell to her knees beside the girl who had sacrificed herself to ensure Sam was alive. "Claire, I thank you so much for your sacrifice," the tears in her eyes from her thoughts that Sam would be dead remaining for Claire.

"CLAIRE!" Shane yelled louder than anyone could have thought, the shock on his face that he had attacked the girl he loved evident as he raced towards them. However, before he could get within ten metres of Claire through the rapidly thinning humans, Oliver stopped him with one hand. His hand tightened around the neck of the almost murderer and Shane choked. "I didn't mean it, I swear," he croaked in the breath he had, his eyes swelling with tears as blood issued ever more out of Claire's wound.

The sound of his snapping neck and slumping to the floor roused Claire ever so slightly, made her realise that her death would be futile because the person they had been fighting to save had died. Not only that, but he had caused _her_ to die with him. how selfish.

"Amelie, _do_ something," Myrnin cried out, angst the only emotion evident in his tone as Sam began to douse the flames on Claire's body, to hopefully reduce the pain. As she tried to focus on his words, she realised that she was screaming in pain, unable to see through the clouded state of her vision due to the tears.

"What can I do, Myrnin?" Amelie sighed as she smoothed back the hair from the girl's face, trying to make it the most comfortable it could be for her to die in such a violent manner.

He turned to her, his eyes frantic with worry and almost an insane level of fear as his grip on the whimpering girl tightened – yet it wasn't painful for her. All it made her realise was that she _belonged_ in his arms, that she needed to stay there forever – and if death was the way for that to happen, so be it.

"Don't you _dare_ give up, CB!" Eve growled as she fought past Sam to reach Claire, everyone focused on the girl who had blood spewing out of her mouth as she struggled to breathe on and on. "You're going to be here for _ages_ – look, Richard already called an ambulance; it's on it's way," Claire could tell she was lying, trying to make her hang on for as long as possible, when the darkness only wanted to wash over her.

Claire tried to strain her eyes, to get past the group around her all yelling at her to stay with them, Sam telling her how much her act meant to him, to try and decide whether or not 'they' were winning. She meant they as in the vampires, as in the group she would rather lost in the long run but win against these rebels.

Just then, Oliver's _beautiful_ face popped up in front of her, a smile somehow on there. "We have destroyed them," he informed her, almost reading in her face that she wanted to know the result before she died.

Her heartbeat began to slow as the blood flow began to stop – only because she had no blood left in her body to sustain her.

"NO!" Eve screamed as Claire's eyes began to close, fluttering to try and read the words Myrnin continued to frantically mutter to her.

_I love you_.

She thought that that was what he said, that he loved her, but her eyelids fluttered shut and they wouldn't reopen, almost as if they were lined with lead. However, she could have sworn she heard the word "turn."

However, her senses soon dropped off as she felt as if she was falling.

_What a brilliant All Hallow's Eve._

* * *

_So, what do you all think of that?_

_Vampire Claire or not…now, that is the question._

_And NO MORE SHANE! _

_6 reviews and I'll update._

_Don't__ fav/alert/read without reviewing please and thanks._

_Vicky xx_


	7. Crimson

_Chapter 7:_

_Dedicated to watching stiricide who, whilst she is actually yet to __**read**__ MV, has agreed to read them._

_And to Maddie, again. As you're epical._

_Thanks to Cassie for an __**amazing**__ idea._

_And to you all on RoseScorpius Fans for my boring you with MV_

_And, to those of you who care, I'M GOING TO LONDON TOMORROW! Just for couple hours in the afty, but as I live in Yorkshire, it's really not often I go so WHOOOP! (I've been like 4 times)_

_**I don't own anything**_

* * *

"Myrnin, you have to let her go," Amelie told her longest friend gently, barely holding back the tears herself for the mutilated body of the girl who had saved them all so many times in his arms. "Give her to me," she pressed, reaching out to take Claire from him.

He refused and pulled her in closer to his body, clutching the snow white corpse – for that was what it was then – into him in an attempt to warm her with the little warmth he had. Sam had somehow managed to remove the stake from her chest, to make it seem a little more natural the way she laid, and it was by the side of them all, a disgusting piece in the situation.

"No, she's not leaving me," he growled as Amelie reached out to take Claire, having entirely removed herself from the battle to deal with this issue. She could hear Oliver barking orders for the capture of all the still living rebels, as she would have arranged herself, and yet it wasn't enough.

_Nothing_ would be enough without this girl.

As she watched the girl lying there, Amelie was struck by what a ray of sun she was in the darkness of the town. The things she had done, and continued to do until the moment barely passed, had brought a wave of fresh life into Morganville, had been part of the catalyst that had resulted in Amelie believing that this year was the time for a new reign of peace in Morganville. The girl had given her life now for the town, for the happiness of _her_, and there was no way that Amelie could ever put into words how grateful she was.

All around, Amelie could sense the other vampires inquisition as to what had occurred, yet the five of them surrounded Claire and Myrnin, to ensure that it was kept as private as possible, for as long as possible. It could not continue, particularly with the brutality of the murder, yet Amelie wanted the girl to have as much dignity in this time period as possible.

"Give her to me, Myrnin," she pressed again, a touch more authority in her voice as she directed him to obey her. However, he continued to refuse, resulting in her looking across at Sam with a sense of desperateness to the glance. She conveyed everything in that look: fear for what had happened; shock at the suddenness and violence; gratitude that he hadn't been killed; shame for being so happy that she had Sam when Claire had died for it.

"No," he moaned again, but Amelie knew he had to let go. He had to leave, otherwise she was sure he would try things that ought not to be done to defile those in the state Claire was in.

"Yes," she ordered him this time, pressing against his will, something which was all too easy in his fragile state. She expected him to be harder to compel than normal due to the tragedy that had befallen upon him, yet he was all too easy to order. It worried her, that perhaps this had been the thing that finally broke his spirit, something she would never have dared do in her life. "I shall care for her, Myrnin, you know I shall," her voice softened dramatically as her arms reached out to take Claire.

She looked as if she shouldn't be able to hold someone of Claire's small weight, yet she was more than able to take her from Myrnin as he slowly released her. Claire's head flopped backwards as her body settled in Amelie's arms, blood beginning to stain the woman's dress yet she didn't care.

Amelie looked over at the others, all of whom had tears in their eyes as they watched the swaying of Claire's hair in the breeze. It was as if they were trying to block it out, she realised, trying to imagine that this hadn't happened even though they were all present.

"Come with me, Sam," Amelie's voice broke the silence that began to linger around the little group. "I require your assistance," the tone to her voice was something many of them had never heard: compassion held there as she looked down at the face of the girl who had given so much to have them all standing there then.

He stood up slowly, his head bowed as he stepped past Myrnin and around the patch of grass where the girl had been laid. It was sopping with the crimson liquid that resembled everything she had given up, sopping with the memories of those few seconds that should forever be ingrained in their minds.

Silently, the pair of them walked with Claire towards the Elder's Council building, past the dozens of vampires who seemed to understand what had happened. Oliver followed behind them, almost in an undertaker fashion, and he ensured that the vampires stayed away, a mark of respect for the fallen angel.

…

Amelie set Claire down on the desk in her office, hastily throwing all paperwork on the floor in the most disorganised fashion she had ever been in. Then she sat on her chair and looked at the girl, smoothing her hair back slowly in a rhythmic motion, until all the hair had entirely been scraped back.

"What do you want her for?" Sam spoke and his voice was rough, as if he hadn't spoken in weeks. "She's dead, Amelie. You can't bring her back, can't take her to the hospital and have her fixed. You _know_ you can't."

She held a hand up to silence him, closing her eyelids slowly over her cloudy grey eyes, unable to decide whether she should do this or not. "I know that, Sam, otherwise why would you be here, looking as you are today?" she asked him almost rhetorically, having concluded there was still a chance for Claire…just not as she had been previously.

He took a few seconds.

And then he understood what Amelie was trying to say.

"You're going to turn her," he said it simply, not elaborating on what he had said.

"Yes, that is correct," Amelie murmured, her voice seeming far away as she spoke. "She didn't deserve to die, Sam, and she never had the chance to say whether or not she wanted this, for I did not offer it with the others present. Therefore, I deigned it an idea to bring her here and complete the transformation, allowing her the chance to decline it before the sun rises. If she does, then she can die as though she had done before, yet instantaneously."

Sam struggled to comprehend – that much was obvious on his face, Amelie saw. "So…basically, you didn't say anything so you didn't raise Myrnin and the others' spirits incase she _doesn't_ want this?" he confirmed. "And if she doesn't – _if_ – she can die before the sunrise, yet painlessly?" he continued, looking for confirmation in Amelie as her head rose from the bowed position and her eyes slowly opened.

She nodded slowly, her hand moving to take Claire's hand lightly within her own. "I believe I ought to have offered her the chance and this is the only way I can," she explained further. "If you care not for this turn in events, Sam, you may leave…I simply felt it…I needed someone with me," she whispered, those words explaining how much gratitude she had that he continued to be in the world, in the world with _her_.

He moved across and took Claire's other hand, not understanding how she could still be turned when she was dead, yet deciding not to question Amelie. "I'll stay – I owe my life to this girl," he managed a hint of a smile as he looked at Amelie before casting his gaze to Claire. "Thanks, kiddo."

"I should start," Amelie said, preparing her arm for a removal of blood.

"Wait, you're just doing it the normal way?" Sam asked, absolute shock on his face as he processed what Amelie was doing, the exact same as what she had done to Michael, yet in a more clinical manner.

Amelie smiled ever so slightly, the smile seeming filled with triumph and almost a sweet tinge of ruthlessness, for the strangest of reasons. "Oh yes," she agreed most easily, her eyes flickering back down to the girl on the desk. "For, you see, Sam, she…as of yet, she is not dead."

…

Myrnin refused to move from the spot in which he continued to lay, refused to leave the spot where his Claire had died. He managed to tell her he loved her before she died, so he had the small consolation she knew his feelings, yet he would now never know if she loved him back.

"Come on, we should go, Myrnin," far from her joking with him previously, Eve was entirely serious as she tried to make the vampire budge from the stained grass. It was almost like an aura of desolation hung over them as they continued to sit there, the ebony black sky entirely devoid of stars that usually twinkled. The only light was the remnants of the fire torches as the electricity continued to be turned off in the Square.

"I'm not _leaving_," he screamed, rocking himself back and forth, akin to him when he suffered the disease. He was having an episode, one of the crazily out of control feeling you get when someone you love dies before you, and he couldn't escape from it even if he wanted to. And he didn't – it was his fault Claire was dead; if he had protected her, made her go to the safe house with Amelie, she wouldn't be lying dead wherever Amelie had stolen her away to. She would be alive, vibrant as always with her perfect skin, the smile that made him feel almost human when she gave him the honour of having her attention for even the most fleeting of moments.

"He's not going to leave, Eve," Michael murmured, getting Eve to lay off pestering him, for which Myrnin was glad. He was never going to leave this spot, not without Claire.

And that wasn't going to happen.

…

Amelie extracted a vial of her blood from her own arm before injecting it directly into the vena cava in Claire's body, trying to kickstart the reaction to get Claire to turn into a vampire.

It was a long and arduous process, made harder still by the state Claire was in. The flicker of life within her was deeply buried, so deep that it would take every ounce of strength she had as the eldest vampire to bring it out.

Even Myrnin had written the girl off as dead, the grief clouding the vampire enhanced senses he had. If he had listened, he would have heard the almost murmuring of her heart as it struggled to contract even a millimetre, yet it still worked. Her brain continued to whir slightly and, though she wasn't breathing, there wasn't a need for oxygen somehow. Amelie had saved another when in the same predicament – Sam – and he had turned out exactly, so she hoped the same would occur here.

"She's _alive_?" Sam pressed, still unable to believe it as Amelie's eyes remained trained on Claire.

"Yes: there is a flicker inside of her that shall not burn out now my blood is in her system," she replied distractedly, her hand moving to Claire's forehead as her own eyes closed shut.

She began to murmur things, things that Sam had no idea what meant for they were in an old tongue, the language of the ancients. But he remembered the sounds from his own turning, then Michael's, and he knew what would happen.

Amelie's eyes flashed open, blazing silver, and she gulped in a great deal of air as she began the turning of Claire now she was wholly alive once again. "She is near, Sam, the power of All Hallow's Eve aiding not hindering here," she smiled ever so slightly.

Claire would live.

As a vampire.

* * *

_So, this is the penultimate chapter._

_Sad, huh?_

_Well, I'm going to London as I said, tomorrow, so I'll write the chapter on the train but I'm not sure if I'll get it typed up when I get in as that'll be about 11:30pm._

_So it may be Tuesday…maybe not though!_

_Don't __fav/alert/read without reviewing please and thanks._

_Vicky xx_


	8. Sunrise

_Chapter 8:_

_Thanks to everyone who has reviewed this story over the past, well, week._

_Once again, huge thanks to RoseScorpius Fans forum, about half of whom I have __**just about**__ persuaded to read MV… XD_

_**I don't own anything**_.

* * *

…

Founder's Square was, for the first time that night, deathly quiet. Empty save for one heartbroken vampire, the once vibrantly coloured lush Square was devoid of persons, an eerie presence looming over the area – it was, after all, All Hallow's Eve.

Outside of the Square was bedlam, fighting between rebel humans and vampires ensuing as the former fought back for their lives. Yet, inside the Square, it was an entirely different story, the lack of action marking it apart from the area outside. Well, the lack of action _now_ – not even an hour ago, full battle had been raging on the grassy plains of Founder's Square.

Tears dripped down Myrnin's face as he made no effort to hide his grief, cared nought for who saw him – after all, he was the insane vampire. And now, he was the insane vampire who had lost the _second_ love of his life.

Life wasn't going that well for him, if he was being honest.

With every minute that passed, the blood on his fingers – the blood of his Claire – dried a fraction more, removed her further from him, taking her into a world unknown. He clung onto her, kept her last minutes running through his head again and again, tormenting himself to remind every part of him that it was _his_ fault she was dead. It was all his fault. He would never get away from that, never get away from the way he could have ordered her away and she would have had to go.

But he didn't.

"Claire," he whispered her name again, a breath in the wind around him. It was picking up speed, he noticed subconsciously, threatening to clear his entire life – as Founder's Square was his life now, for it was the place where she had died.

He was the lone, solitary figure in the Square, dejected and hunched over as he knelt by the slowly drying blood patch that was all he had left of Claire.

Or so he thought.

…

"Amelie?" Sam's voice made Amelie aware of her surroundings again, removing a touch of the concentration previously focused upon Claire. "Is it working?" he pressed when she didn't say anything to him, didn't open her eyes or remove her hands from Claire's temples. He wanted to know, yet she didn't tell him anything.

His question had her eyes fly open and focus on him, flashing a blazing silver he recognised from the other turnings. She tried to control herself from breaking entirely from the change the was taking longer, much longer, than it ought to have done, knowing if she lost all focus, there was no hope.

Slowly, she nodded, her lips continuing to move near soundlessly, repeating:

"Excitare, quasi unus ex nobis oriri," or, in English, awaken, arise as one of us, over and over again, sending strength through her fingertips to Claire's brain, to aid the change from a near corpse to a vampire. Or so she hoped.

Amelie had long forgotten the history of All Hallow's Eve – the variations on its heritage between the old Pagan and then the Christian beliefs were huge, yet she knew one thing – she had seen powerful vampires utilise it to their advantage…just as she was doing to bring Claire back from the brink of death. The weakening between the worlds brought with it an excess of power, something she had tapped into…and it was working.

Amelie stepped away from her desk suddenly, her eyelids opening this time to reveal glowing crimson eyes, pupils dilated, yet with the strangest hint of red to the impenetrable ebony colour – it created a sort of sinister sheen, something that would have had all sane humans (and most of the vampires) running away. It was a mark of her power, along with the way she could order vampires to do her bidding, and it proved how very much she had put into ensuring that Claire came back, that her life wasn't wasted to save Sam's.

"It is happening," she said in explanation to the man who stood before her. As her eyes locked with his, she took a deep breath, something she never did. It seemed to invoke something in her, bring her emotions, her humanity, closer to the surface of her near flawless skin.

Her eyes cleared back to their usual grey colour, non-descript normally, besides for the glutton of knowledge visible with even the briefest of glances. And, that night, you could see everything she was feeling: a first for so many people. Everything was different that night, she thought, and there was no going back from it.

"She shall rise," he said it as a statement rather than asking it as a question – he already knew the answer.

"Yes," Amelie replied simply, moving closer to Sam as she spoke. "She shall, if this is what she desires, rise once again…as one of us."

She allowed him to hold her close to his body for the shortest of moments before disengaging herself – it was not a time for her to be selfish and concentrate on her own life, not with the events of the past hour. So she moved back to Claire and watched as she waited for something to happen, to show Claire was not a lost cause.

…

The pain was indescribable as Claire began to crawl back from the jaws of death, Amelie's blood being the catalyst. As the vampire healing blood was added to her near dry system, she knew she had the choice between continuing on into the afterlife or fighting bloody hard to ensure she stayed in the world she knew and loved. She owed it to Myrnin, for him to understand how much she needed him, how much more she had to learn from him…and, whilst she couldn't be in a relationship with him at the current time, there was always the chance in the future. Or so she hoped.

So she fought…she fought back against death and clung to every bit of energy her body managed to claim from Amelie. Every second she forced herself to fight on, it got harder and harder, inflicting more and more agony on her body. The wound where she had been staked – slightly premature an assassination attempt, she thought ironically – healed over, unleashing waves of agony that ran through her entire body. Hotspots began to form where various changes were occurring and all she wanted was to rid herself of every bit that shrieked in agony, to return to a period of comparative coolness.

_Let me die_, she thought wildly, the crucifying torture making her regret her conscience to bring her back, made her regret not clinging to the edge brought by the stake – that was _nothing_ compared to this.

And then it was all over.

"Claire?" she heard the murmuring of her name by Sam, a volume never heard before by her, and her eyes shot open, her throat craving human blood. It was a primitive desire, the one she wanted solely at the time, a lack of comprehensive thoughts in her brain as she wanted human blood.

And that's what she got.

.

Minutes later, she was as close to normal as she could be as a vampire. It was already strange, yet she managed to ignore that as she focused on Amelie.

"If you care not for this life," Amelie paused and swallowed, looking directly at the girl who was so similar to her human self. "If you do not desire this life, I can cease it painlessly for you," she finished the sentence quietly, looking down as if she dared not look at Claire as she offered a euthanasia of sorts.

"Thank you for the offer, but I chose to fight – I didn't go through all that pain just to give up," Claire responded firmly, a raw sense of power in her that she didn't recognise. It was what Michael had tried to explain to her when he was turned, yet she could only just fully comprehend his meaning. "So I'll pass today, but, you know, maybe you could start offering a painless death lottery. It'd probably go down a treat in this town, get the majority of the people in this town playing, able to redeem their price at will," she grinned widely at this, watching as Amelie's eyes flickered back to her face and narrowed, akin to her usual self.

"I do not believe that shall be on the cards, Claire, yet it is refreshing to see your…_strange_ sense of humour has carried through with you," Amelie replied carefully, adding, "not that I care for it," under her breath.

"Remember I can hear you now," Claire grinned again as she caught Amelie's cheeks flushing a pale pink -the furthest a vampire could blush. "And that wasn't very nice, now, was it?" she continued, raising her eyebrows pointedly before laughing.

She looked out of the window and saw that there was the faintest tinge of pink around the edge of the sky continuing to be devoid of stars. The smallest lightening of the sky enhanced her already improved vision and she could see all the way into the far corner of the Square, where she had 'died'.

"Is…is that Myrnin?" she confirmed with Amelie, trying to focus in on the body continuing to kneel there.

"Yes, he won't leave now you've gone," Amelie's faint smile faded away to nothing as she watched her longest friend continue to struggle. "I would head down there now, if you are, Claire, before the rays of the sun catch your delicate skin," she continued, turning away from the window and heading towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Claire demanded, following Amelie across to the door with a lithe speed that astounded her – she didn't move across the room _that_ quickly, did she?

"There are a great many humans who have fought against us, Claire; I must be privy to their punishments to ensure Oliver does not kill them _all_," she sighed deeply. "Walk with me down there, Claire, and go see Myrnin, show him you are not, indeed, dead."

Claire nodded and, together, they walked down through the building, walking slowly towards the entrance area to Founder's Square, where Amelie stopped, allowing Claire to go on alone, which she did.

Her dress billowing around her as she moved with a grace she continued to marvel at, Claire's hair flew backwards as her body raced across to meet Myrnin, to force him away from the place of grievance. Her dress was covered in her blood and it wasn't particularly appealing to her, yet she didn't have time to change if she wanted to rescue Myrnin – the horizon was already beginning to become clear, the morning of All Hallow's Day starting almost at the same time as Claire's All Hallow's Eve ended, and she had to get him then.

"Myrnin!" she called his name, confused when he didn't turn back towards her. yet, as she reached him, she saw the tears dripping down his face, saw the hysterical state in which he was in, and she realised he hadn't heard her.

Her hand placed itself on his shoulder and he jumped almost one metre into the air, which startled her as much as he evidently had been startled. "What did I tell you?" he snapped angrily, evidently having not seen Claire. "I'm not leaving without her, so unless you persuade Amelie to bring her body back, I'm staying here," he continued, bringing a sense of melancholy to Claire that he could care so much for her and she could be so naïve towards it.

"Myrnin, it's me," she repeated his name more forcefully, stepping around him to try and stand in front of him without standing in her own blood – some things were just _too_ creepy to do. "I'm alive…well…a vampire. Amelie turned me," she explained as his face turned to hers in shock, a sense of denial spreading across his features as she spoke.

"No," he replied softly, shaking his head. "You're dead, Claire. I held you in my arms. I would have saved you if I could. You're dead and I'm going crazier than normal."

She denied this time and time again, wondering if she could touch him again to prove she wasn't a ghost – but he wouldn't let her near him.

"I cannot cope with another ghost, Claire, I just can't," he smiled with a touch of melancholy to his usual expression of happiness.

"And you have no need to!" she exploded, anger causing her to move with a hasty edge to her movements, as jagged as a vampire could move. "Listen to me, Myrnin: I am not dead and if you don't get your ass out of this Square _right now_, I shall actually _stake you myself_!" she snarled the last part, reaching down to pick up a mislaid stake – _not_ the one she was staked with, again with the creepy thing – and pressed it into his back.

He chuckled very slightly, slowing until, finally, he stopped. Then his head snapped around with incredulity as if he actually understood that she was there with him, that she _was_ alive – or, in the world, at least.

"It _is_ you!" he stood up, wiping his hands down on his trousers before he reached out and hugged her tighter than she would have been able to cope with if she continued to be human. "Oh, Claire, you mustn't do anything like that again – you had me worried!"

She rolled her eyes, as if she could have done anything to prevent her near death, before slipping her hand into his colossal, in comparison, one. "Come on; the sun is coming up," she spoke with truth, the pitch black sky being broken apart by the daylight, as it was every sunrise. "Let's go watch it," she suggested as they walked back towards the Elder's Council building.

All Hallow's Eve was over. The worst violence in Morganville's history had occurred, when it was supposed to symbolise a new reign of peace.

"Remind me that, if next year Amelie wants to do this again, I'm to slap her," Claire said to Myrnin as they walked into one of the rooms on the upper floor, the tinted windows allowing her to watch as the sun gradually became more and more prominent in the sky.

"Rather you than me, yet certainly, my lady," he laughed slightly in response, before noticing something on the floor. "Oh, look, a small pumpkin for…oh my _lord_, BOB!"

The hysteria on his face for Bob made Claire realise that nothing had changed.

_Fin._

* * *

_So, we're at the end._

_I can't really make you review anymore, yet I'd appreciate it if you all reviewed and left comments about the story._

_Oh and no faving without reviewing please :D_

_Thanks_

_Vicky xx_


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